The variety of elements included in the arms of football clubs can be confusing to an outsider. For example, what is the relationship between Barcelona and England? What does a kangaroo do on the emblem of the Czech Bohemians? How did the owl become the symbol of Sheffield Wednesday? But all these seemingly incompatible elements always have their hidden meaning.

Aberdeen (Scotland).

With the Aberdeen emblem, it would seem that everything is simple: the year of foundation, the stylized capital letter of the name ... However, this same "A" with the ball instead of the crossbar, nothing more than the side view of the football goal, into which the ball flew in. In this case, fans and opponents of Aberdeen consider this symbol in their own way: the first - like a ball that flies into the opponent's gate, the second - into the gates of Aberdeen.

Atletico (Spain).

Bear, climbing the strawberry tree, is a symbol of Madrid from the 13th century. With red and white stripes, too, everything is clear - this is the color of the form in which the team plays. But what do the seven stars mean? One for each title - a little, a dozen - a little ... In fact, everything is simple: this is a stylized image of the constellation Ursa Major - another reference to the symbol of Madrid - the bear.

Barcelona, ??Spain).

FC Barcelona in Spain has always been a symbol of Catalan nationalism, so the flag of this rebellious province in the upper right quadrant is not surprising. However, the English flag nearby may cause someone to guess the English roots of the ground or the support from England of Catalonia's desire to secede from Spain. But in this situation everything is completely different, just St. George, whose symbol is a red cross on a white field, is not only the patron saint of the motherland of football, but also of the city of Barcelona.

Benfica (Portugal).

The base on which the shield with the emblem of the football team is located and the eagle with its wings spread proudly, is nothing more than ... a bicycle wheel. The fact is that Benfica was founded by fans of a two-wheeled vehicle, and for a long time it was the race that was a priority for Grupo Sport Benfica, and football was only a side branch.

Bohemians (Czech Republic).

The presence of such an exotic animal for Europe, like a kangaroo, on the emblem of the club from the Old World could force a person with a rich imagination to assume, by analogy with Benfica, that at the origins of the club there were some fans of athletics - jumpers in length and height. But everything is much simpler. In 1927, when the Prague team was still called Vrsovice, she went on tour in Australia, during which the Czechs were presented with a pair of kangaroos. Returning home, the players gave the animals to the zoo in Prague and took over their patronage, for which they received the appropriate nickname, which was later illustrated on the club's emblem.

Boca Juniors (Argentina).

Probably everyone knows that the Argentine grandee marks each trophy with an asterisk on the club coat of arms. But why were these colors chosen? The thing is that in 1906, when the club was based, its founders argued until hoarseness, but they did not come to a common opinion about the colors in which the team will play. And then it was a truly Solomon decision: all together went to the port of Buenos Aires La Boca and began to wait for which ship first enters the harbor. The first was a Swedish sailboat, so the colors of the flag of Sweden - blue and yellow - became native to Boki.

Bournemouth (England).

In vain, someone will look for some hidden symbolism in the profile of a long-haired man, beating his head on the ball, placed on the emblem of Cherry. This is not a mythical ancient hero and not a mermaid, as jokes like to joke. This is a real person, living to this day: ex-forward Bournemouth Dickey Dowsett, who played for the team from 1957 to 1962, scored 79 goals in 169 matches and earned his game and human qualities of the fans' love.

West Ham (England).

The emblem of West Ham is simple and uncomplicated: the name, city and two hammers of rivet-metal workers. But here to this simplicity, the blue contour? And here everything is justified: it is the colors of Her Majesty's navy, and the hull of the first armored cruiser of the British Navy HMS Warrior was manufactured at the Shipyard shipyard Thames Ironworks, whose employees formed a football team, now known as West Ham. By the way, on each of the hammers there is a logo of the company-founder - TIW.

Ghent (Belgium).

An Indian for Belgium is almost as exotic as a kangaroo for the Czech Republic; nevertheless, the appearance of a native American profile on the Ghent emblem is not some kind of significant symbol. Just in 1895, the famous Buffalo Bill first visited Ghent along with the Barnum & Bailey circus in Belgium. His performance in the arena had a tremendous success, as well as numerous subsequent tours. Fans of the city football team also became admirers of Buffalo Bill, and in 1920 immortalized his image on the emblem of Ghent.

Dinamo (Bucharest, Romania).

A pair of wolves appeared on the emblem of the club from the Romanian capital in 1998. Most fans associate this with the team's nickname - Red Wolves. But why two of them? And the fact is that in the 60s - 70s of the last century, Dynamo brothers played Radu and Ion Nunweiler, each of whom played for a team of over half a thousand matches and six times became the champion of Romania. Their fans at that time nicknamed the Red Wolves, and only then this nickname spread to the fan club movement and the team itself.

Kaiser Chiefs (South Africa).

Another Indian miraculously appeared in southern Africa, on the emblem of the club Kaiser Chiefs from Johannesburg. This time the appearance of a native of America on the Black Continent is not due to circus tours, but either with a lack of imagination from the founder of the club, or his love for the team in which he spent the best years of his career. Kaiser Motong, from 1968 to 1971, played for the Atlanta Chiefs team in the North American Soccer League, and on his return to his homeland created his own club, taking almost unchanged the emblem of the team from the state of Georgia, and the name combined with his name and name Atlanta Chiefs.

Cologne (Germany).

In a black silhouette in the center of the emblem, anyone familiar with architectural monuments knows the outlines of the famous Cologne Cathedral - one of the largest in the world. But how did the goat get there? It all started with the joke played by coach Henness Weisweiler, who in 1950 led to the city carnival of his pet - a goat. Good-natured and playful animal is so fond of everything that has since become a regular at all matches of Cologne, and then Henes is a cloven-hoofed and has become a talisman of co-munda.

Reims (France).

The letters S and R by the majority are perceived as an abbreviation of the full name of the club - Stade de Reims, and the "curl" between them - like an abstract pattern. However, these three elements have a direct link to one of the symbols of the city - the Cathedral of Rheims. More precisely - with the figure of the so-called "Smiling Angel", located in the northern portal of the western facade of the cathedral. Otherwise, this sculpture is called "Smile of Reims" - Sourire de Reims, and the same "curl" - its symbolic designation.

Troyes (France).

The emblem of Troyes is as "primitive" as that of West Ham, but the number "10" leads to a dead end anyone who is not familiar with the administrative division of France. The country is divided into 101 departments, each of which has its own personal number. This number is used in postal codes and official records management. So the department of the Ob, in which the city of Troyes is located, has the serial number 10, so if someone wants to write a letter to the club, then it is enough for him to look at the Troy's emblem so as not to err with the index.

Chivas de Guadalajara (Mexico).

The emblem of the club almost completely copies the coat of arms of Guadalajara, so the presence on it of an uncommon, in general for Mexico knight's helmet, granted to the city by King Charles V in 1539, does not bother anyone. But the basis of the five red and six white bands by the majority is perceived as a reference to the colors of the form in which the team. However, in this case there is a confusion between cause and effect: red and white colors fell on the club's emblem because of the founder of the team Edgar Everart, a native of Bruges. Red and white - the colors of the flag of this Belgian city.

Sheffield Wednesday (England).

Where did the owl emerge from the emblem of Sheffield Wednesday and the corresponding nickname of the club can explain at once that the native of Sheffield. It is generally accepted that as the team plays at the Hillsborough stadium, it also belongs territorially to the suburb of the same name. However, the border between him and the adjoining Aulerton (Owlerton) is a purely symbolic concept, that's why everyone considers himself a resident of the area he likes best. In translation from English Aul (Owl) - an owl, an owl, and then everything is clear without further explanation.

Espanyol (Spain).

As in the case of Guadalajara, when looking at the striped blue and white foundation of the club's coat of arms from Barcelona, ??the first idea comes to mind about the colors of the form in which the team. And not everyone knows that this is a tribute to the memory of Admiral Roger de Lauria, who commanded the Catalan fleet in the 13th century and who practically did not know the defeats in sea battles. Blue-white - the colors of the personal pennant de Lauria.